I recently returned from a glorious trip to South Korea. While I have much praise for the country and how much fun it is, I can’t deny that it’s a hard place to be gluten free (or vegetarian). Almost everything has gochujang and soy sauce, two ingredients generally made with gluten containing ingredients. Now that I’m home, I’m keen to start developing gluten free and vegetarian Korean recipes, starting with this gluten free gochujang.

Gluten free gochujang

A note, before we dive in. My aim when developing recipes from other cultures is never to ‘improve’ or appropriate a cuisine. All I ever intend to do is provide an alternative for those of us who have dietary requirements but still love to eat food from other cultures.

This recipe is a very cheaty and not at all traditional version. Why? A few reasons. Firstly, a lot of ingredients in traditional gochujang are not available where I live. I’d have to assume that many of my readers are in the same boat. Ordering a number of different ingredients online is not accessible to everyone, so I wanted to develop a version that can be made with ingredients I can access (and hopefully you can too).

Secondly, traditional gochujang contains barley malt (a gluten containing ingredient). From my research, the barley contributes a nutty and sweet flavour and aids the fermentation of the gochujang paste. Rice syrup, another ingredient, also often contains barley malt.

Finally, traditional gochujang takes months to make.

So, this gluten free gochujang is quite different from a traditional recipe. It isn’t fermented and it utilises other ingredients to achieve the depth of flavour. By no means traditional, I hope you’ll still enjoy it as a gluten free alternative to regular gochujang.

Recipe notes

• This is by no means an authentic gochujang. It’s a gluten free alternative that I have tried to make as ‘gochujang-like’ as possible.
• This is gochujang paste as opposed to gochujang sauce. I fully intend to develop a sauce recipe with this paste and will update the post when I do.
• I have tested this using CJ brand gochujang as my measuring stick of taste. It was the most legitimate looking brand I could find at my local Asian grocer. If this is a terrible choice of measuring stick, let me know!
• Is this exactly the same as gochujang? No, not quite. It does lack a little bit of the flavour complexity. However, it’s a quick and easy gluten free stand in.
• This gochujang is gluten free and vegan.

A quick FODMAP note

This gochujang paste is not low FODMAP. Korean chilli flakes are only low FODMAP in 2g serves and contain moderate fructose in serves of 5g. Miso paste is low FODMAP in 12g serves, but contains moderate fructans in serves of 75g.

The main issue is that this is just the paste – something that generally has other ingredients added to make a sauce, which is then served with a whole bowl of food. The paste itself is already moderate in FODMAP content (serving size dependent) and then other variables are thrown into the mix.

I will try to develop a lower FODMAP version, but I wanted to flag this for readers who look for low FODMAP recipes. Chilli can be quite tricky given the small volume designated as a low fructose serve.

Ingredient notes

This recipe uses gochujaru or Korean chilli flakes as the base. They are a bright red chilli flake that is a lot milder and more fruity than the ruddy, red chilli flakes sold in Australian supermarkets. I haven’t tested a version without Korean chilli flakes – they are available from Asian grocers and online in large bags. You can’t simply substitute in regular chilli flakes as the paste will be far too spicy.

As a shortcut to the fermented flavour of gochujang, we’re using a dark, funky miso paste and gluten free soy sauce. I use Genmai miso paste (which is made from brown rice) from Spiral foods. It is fermented in a barrel for 12 months and has a dark, funky flavour.

A lot of store bought miso in Australia is not really aged miso and uses alcohol. Make sure you read the label and choose a good quality brand (which is more expensive but absolutely worth it). I really recommend finding a gluten free dark miso. It is much better at replicating the funky fermented flavour of gochujang.

I use maple syrup for the lovely caramelised sweetness. You could also use rice malt syrup or potentially even honey if you are in a real pinch (this will no longer be vegan).

Tamari or gluten free soy sauce add an extra hit of saltiness if you feel your paste needs it.

Tips for adding more funky flavour

Although optional, there are some gluten free and vegan ways to add in some extra funk.

• My personal favourite is to add a bit of kimchi juice. I’m working on a low FODMAP kimchi recipe, but for this purpose I used a vegan kimchi I bought from the store. It adds some fermented flavour and a bit of tang.
• I haven’t tested this, but you could add some brine from fermented tofu (or a bit of mashed fermented tofu).
• Another option is to add some pickled garlic. I haven’t used garlic in this recipe because I wanted to develop an onion and garlic free gochujang recipe. However, you can add some finely mashed pickled garlic to your mixture. I use pickled garlic because it is a low FODMAP way to eat garlic. Personally, I much prefer making my own pickled garlic – it tastes infinitely better than store bought.

Where to use your gluten free gochujang

Keep in mind that gochujang adds fructose to dishes. The below are low FODMAP recipes, but may no longer be low fructose with added gochujang.

• In gluten free vegetarian bibimbap (I have a recipe coming soon)
• As a replacement for chilli crisp in these 5 minute chilli oil noodles
• Add it to sweet sticky tofu for a spicy hit
• Stir some through pasta sauces or lasagne sauces for a bit of heat